Follow the Drop – Municipal Water Treatment
Municipal Water Treatment
By choosing a municipal water treatment plant as your next destination, you will be sent to a municipality that withdraws raw water from the Bow River into a potable water treatment plant. This could be in Banff, Canmore, Cochrane, or Calgary.
Have you ever wondered how clean drinking water arrives at your tap? A potable water treatment plant moves water through a series of pipes, settling tanks and filters. Once the water is cleaned and tested, it enters an underground pipe distribution network that transports water to schools, homes, offices, stores, parks and other locations.
In terms of water quality, you are in luck! Water treatment plants remove suspended and dissolved solids, as well as any chemical and biological contaminants to a level where it is safe for humans to drink. Just before the water leaves the treatment plant, chlorine is added to maintain disinfection as water travels through the distribution system.
Definition
Potable: Safe to drink.
Where next?
Now that you are part of a thoroughly clean water supply, it’s time to make your next move! Water that is pumped from a water treatment plant to municipal users has many different options for where it could end up. For your adventure, however, you will have to choose if you want to be used in a household, a commercial car wash or a park.
References and Further Reading
- Xylem. (2017, August 3). Sensus: Non-Revenue Water Infographic. Retrieved May 27, 2020, from https://sensus.com/solutions/non-revenue-water-infographic/